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Time To Clamp The Octopus Of Tobacco Transnationals
Bobby Ramakant

Tobacco issue, is not only a health issue. It is also an economic issue, development issue, poverty issue and a completely avoidable burden of disease, disability and death, worldwide. Tobacco Transnationals with their popular brands and promotion campaigns like the Global Rampage of Marlboro Man, have been riding over the markets in developing countries, at an unabated scale. Nevertheless, tobacco consumption and promotion, have been rapidly FALLING down on their own home turf.

Tobacco Transnationals like Philip Morris and British American Tobacco companies have been snaking in developing countries including India, and our Governments and people at large, fail to see their wicked gameplan to increase tobacco consumption and hook children and youth to tobacco addiction.

A campaign to mark INTERNATIONAL WEEKS TO RESIST TOBACCO TRANSNATIONALS (APRIL 8 to JUNE 7, 2001) is being run in over 40 countries by ‘Infact’ ( a Boston, USA based corporate watchdog organization) with support from International Non-Governmental Coalition Against Tobacco (INGCAT)- a Johannesburg, South Africa based world body collating over 1400 anti-tobacco groups in world.

The multinationals involved in tobacco businesses who have met with strong resistance from activists in their home countries are now relocating to the developing world nations including India, using aggressive marketing tactics that are yielding fast results. Although America has succeeded in bringing down tobacco consumption levels in USA, marginalizing influence and interference of tobacco industry in American national policies, putting at bay the misleading tobacco promotional campaigns and has actually effectively brought down smoking levels in children and youth since 1964, but America has not attempted to prevent (RATHER ALLOWED) it’s own companies from resorting to unethical, misleading and devious methods to market and sell American tobacco to countries in developing world. American companies have very smoothly mastered the art of circumventing tobacco control laws in our countries.

Unfortunately, abolishing quantitative restrictions (QRs) on tobacco products by Government of India has undoubtedly unleashed a spate of contraband tobacco products in our markets. Actually as evident on the recent exposes of tobacco industry documents, a large number of cigarette multinationals were looking at contraband trade as a growth area in developing countries. Tobacco Workers’ Forum in India, states that the contraband cigarette sale was increasing at the rate of 20 per cent per annum even before the decision of Government of India to uplift Quantitative Restriction on tobacco. Moreover as per the Public Interest Litigation filed by renowned lawyer Rani Jethmalani in Supreme Court, New Delhi, tobacco smuggling in India amounts to over Rupees 22, 000 crores. Bangladeshi cigarette brands in East Indian states have been selling for atleast a decade at very low prices (Rs.5-7.50 for a pack of 10), even when QR were not abolished. In early ‘90s, Leading business magazines had reported that cigarette brands of Tobacco Transnationals had a market of 8 % in India, despite of the fact that these brands were not even formally launched and no Government approval was there to import them.

Tobacco Institute of India (TII) in Andhra Pradesh, recently filed a complaint with supporting documents to Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC), that sale of contraband cigarettes in Andhra Pradesh alone, is of Rupees 500 Crores every year, which is making huge revenue losses to our Government. This is a clear indicator of the hidden component of TOBACCO SMUGGLING IN INDIA. Plus cheap Chinese cigarettes have also flooded Indian markets, even is not-so-big cities like Lucknow, Kanpur, Varanasi, as per the decision of Government of India to remove QR.

A host of other king-size filter cigarettes from Bangladesh, Myanmar, Pakistan and other countries have now flooded the principal cities as well as the remotest corners of the Indian market. Most of these brands are being sold to Indian consumers at Rs 1 per cigarette (or less) which is not a sustainable price for any legitimately imported cigarette. Countervailing duty alone on such imports would amount to Rs 1,450 per 1,000 cigarettes, which makes the MINIMUM PRICE of Rs 1.45 per cigarette, without even taking into account the manufacturing cost, freight and customs duty. Thus these products are liable for confiscation under Chapter XlV of the Customs Act.

The contraband cigarettes also do not carry the mandatory markings like the ‘statutory warning’ prescribed by the Cigarettes Act 1975; retail sale price and other declarations specified in Notification No 44/RE-2000/1997-2000 issued by the director general of foreign trade.

TOBACCO TRANSNATIONALS like Philip Morris and BAT have been purchasing tobacco manufacturing and marketing units of the developing world. MALAYSIAN TOBACCO COMPANY (MTC) is no longer of the people of Malaysia rather it’s tobacco manufacturing and marketing businesses have been entirely sold to British American Tobacco more than a year ago.

In India, BRITISH AMERICAN TOBACCO (BAT) has 31.7% ownership in INDIA'S LARGEST tobacco firm ITC, (with brands like Wills, Classic, Gold Flake), PHILIP MORRIS has 36% ownership of GODFREY PHILIPS INDUSTRIES Second largest tobacco company of India and British American Tobacco also has 32% ownership of the third largest tobacco company in India - Vazir Sultan Tobacco Company (VST). Moreover ITC has a policy where first preference is given to BAT whenever any new issue comes in.

Moreover CEO of Golden Tobacco Company (GTC) Mr.Sanjay Dalmia had said in a press interview to business dailies (dated February 19, 2001) that if Government of India abolishes QR, then he will be able to IMPORT cheap Virginia tobacco and sell them at Rs.10 a pack. This is exactly what has happened within two months time, owing to heavy lobbying by tobacco industries and GTC has come up with brands like STYLE which contain imported tobacco and are priced at Rs.10 as predicted by it’s CEO earlier. Mr.Sanjay Dalmia continued to say this on record that CHEAPER IMPORTED CIGARETTES WILL NOT ONLY CAUSE A SHIFT OF THOSE SMOKING EXPENSIVE BRANDS TO GTC’s CHEAPER ONES, BUT ALSO TEMPT BEEDI SMOKERS TO CHANGE TO GTC’s BRANDS. Clearly tobacco transnationals in connivance with our Governments, have made our markets from labour-intensive to capital intensive and further complicated the issues emerging out of tobacco menace.

Tobacco Transnationals have also started to purchase subsidies of non-toabcco products like World’s largest tobacco company Philip Morris bought-over KRAFT Cheese and food inc, General Foods, etc, to influence policy makers, support favorable political candidates and remove blocks in industrial growth of tobacco fraternity.

Philip Morris has been trying to enter into India and set up a tobacco unit with 100% ownership but our Governments didn’t allowed it despite of all the lobbying measures. So Philip Morris changed the banner of PM and applied through one of it’s subsidiary FOOD company and got the permit from Government of India to set up it’s unit in Andhra Pradesh (Hyderabad). Now the same food company is trying to ask for permit to diversify in tobacco business, which brings out clearly the motives of Philip Morris in entering our nation with 100% ownership.

Tobacco business, marketing, promotion and consumption too, have resulted in grotesque violation of human rights to INFORMATION, EDUCATION, REDRESSAL and RIGHTS TO GOOD HEALTH. In India, ITC’s WILLS brand has started using non-tobacco subsidiary - WILLS APPAREL (Sportswear) - to promote tobacco products. There is NO LAW which can pull down a bill board advertisement of WILLS apparel (Sportswear) however children and adults alike, NEVER fail to associate the brand with the tobacco product.

Tobacco industries like World leader Philip Morris, knew that TOBACCO KILLS and CAUSES CANCERS since 1951, as per the once-secret documents of Philip Morris which were made public upon Minnesota Court’s order in 1998. First complete, documented, and authoritative story on ‘tobacco as a cause of disease and shortener of life’ came out on December 14, 1942. General interest publications like Readers’ Digest carried the story entitled Cigarette Advertising : Fact and Fiction and specifically stated that ‘Cigarettes were DEADLY’ in July issue of 1942. Despite of knowing full-well the potential health hazards of tobacco use, since 1951, tobacco industry has went ahead in HIDING the information from it’s consumers, in misleading them about tobacco use, duping our children and youth, and have been repeatedly trying to circumvent laws in developing countries to promote tobacco use.

Tobacco industry has been deceiving and duping individuals, families, societies, and governments worldwide. All the arguments and promotional campaigns of tobacco merchants are essentially misleading, and dupe the public exchequer.

Tobacco industries have been exploiting the garb of APATHY prevalent among us. We MUST MOVE FROM RHETORIC TO ACTION, and ACTION AT AN UNPRECEDENTED SCALE. Campaign and Education program against this lethal gameplan of tobacco merchants must increasingly gain momentum and IMPACT. We appeal to the masses not to disassociate themselves from this issue pervading everyone’s life.

Tobacco, is no longer merely a health issue like pimples, or potbelly, it is an issue of development, economy, poverty, and dignity to human life. It is PURLEY a man-made, AVOIDABLE, PREVENTABLE burden of disease, disability and death which developing countries like ours, cannot afford.

C-2211, C-Block Crossing, Indira Nagar, Lucknow-226016. India.
Phone : +91 98390 7 33 55 ; Fax : +91-522-353020 ; Email : bobbyramakant@yahoo.com

Website : http://tambakooKILLS.globalink.org, www.INGCAT.org

Credits:Tobacco Graphic provided by- http://users.skynet.be/caepau/Museum%20Tobacco%20Photo%20and%20Poster.htm

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